Plusnet Poll....

[DDtB]

just try asking them a simple question... options appear to be...

1. Sit on the phone for 10+ mins constantly working your way through their automated system only to be told by an auto message that they are too busy to talk to you and then get cut off.

2. Ask the simple question using their online support mechanism (which the phoneline constantly tells you to do)... then get a response 2 days later which actually shows they havent even read your question.... then .... after 1 week of waiting.... have one response which still doesnt even anwer your question.....



Alternatively look at the zen homepage... there is a phone number right in the middle and when you dial it... you speak to a human!!!

Funny thing is... I tried to get plusnet at work but despite repeatedly emailing and phoning them... they refused to offer any advice on products and just kept telling me to look at their website and figure it out for myself. Zen on the other hand listened to my requirements, offered a suitable scheme and had me up and running pretty much the same day!!!

So in summary... plusnet are fine unless you want to ask them something.

[Shug]

Oh well, to be fair mate - that's a pretty new development. I dealt with them as little as 6 months ago and was pleasantly surprised with levels of service and staff. That was not speaking directly to Graeme either, that was dealing with support staff.

[DDtB]

Just really hacks me off that they claim to be no 1. for customer satisfaction in the ISP world with 92% happy yet when you need a simple question answered you can't just pick up the phone and a week down the line I'm still waiting to hear back from their online support thing.....

I have zero tolerance for piss poor service like that....

grrrrrrrr

[Sanjøy]

Oh sweet Jesus, dont get Sky ...

[DDtB]

Oh sweet Jesus, dont get Sky ...

I ain't that stoopid!

[DDtB]

I tell ya though... Don't think even Sky customer services have taken over 1 week to answer a simple question....

Can't wait to get home tonight and see which house broadband may be working in now... if any!?!?

[mac]

Doubt anything will be working with the downpour and thunder storm we've just had in the east end.



Mac

[robin]

Going to be moving from Bull Sh*t to Sky when I can. Brand new build flats, move from 3rd to 1st floor and line speed drops from 8mb to <1. Nothing we can do sorry after 30 min wait on phones.

Is this the training speed reported by the modem or the actual throughput when downloading (e.g. from the adslguide speed test). If the training rate is still 8mbit/s but the throughput is lower than expected this can sometimes happen when the BT equipment rate limits the IP connection to less than the DSL speed (happens a lot to 8meg lines, it seems).

If this is the actual training speed and it's variable then there is something well wrong with your cable. Did you change exchange when you moved flat?

If not, then the way to get the problem resolved is most likely to complain to BT (via your VOICE service provider, perhaps still BT - anyway it doesn't matter who, because BT engineers look after all the copper irrespective of whether it's BT wholesale broadband or an LLU service provider, as I understand it) about the audio quality of the telephone line (which is presumably crackly and horrid now and then ) - then when the engineer shows up, make him/her a cup of tea and explain the real problem and hope s/he can be arsed to track your cable and figure out where the problem is - most likely a flaky joint or cracked cable.

As for plusnet my inlaws use them, having always purchased the cheapest possible DSL package. Had a problem about a year ago over xmas that turned out to be a flaky modem (supplied by me, not plusnet) but they did all the tests from their end and called me back with their findings within 24 hours - pretty acceptable I thought. So I vote for "none of the above".

Cheeers,
Robin

[DDtB]

hmmm... I guess they must just hate me then.

Either way, I'll be moving to zen if they haven't responded by close of play tomorrow. I think 8 days is more than enough time to answer a simple question.

[DDtB]

Still no answer to my original question from over a week ago.

But guess what...... they managed to respond to my cancellation request in under 24 hours!!!

Zen here I come.....

[Sanjøy]

Is this the training speed reported by the modem or the actual throughput when downloading (e.g. from the adslguide speed test). If the training rate is still 8mbit/s but the throughput is lower than expected this can sometimes happen when the BT equipment rate limits the IP connection to less than the DSL speed (happens a lot to 8meg lines, it seems).

If this is the actual training speed and it's variable then there is something well wrong with your cable. Did you change exchange when you moved flat?

If not, then the way to get the problem resolved is most likely to complain to BT (via your VOICE service provider, perhaps still BT - anyway it doesn't matter who, because BT engineers look after all the copper irrespective of whether it's BT wholesale broadband or an LLU service provider, as I understand it) about the audio quality of the telephone line (which is presumably crackly and horrid now and then ) - then when the engineer shows up, make him/her a cup of tea and explain the real problem and hope s/he can be arsed to track your cable and figure out where the problem is - most likely a flaky joint or cracked cable.


Cheeers,
Robin

ADSL Link Downstream Upstream
Connection Speed 1024 kbps 576 kbps
Line Attenuation 15 db 3.5 db
Noise Margin 7 db 11 db

Good point about BT but will they even listen to me since I am paying them no money at all ? BDawg claim to have sent somone out ot hte pole who did cal me an d we chatted about it and he said he thought he could get it up to 1.5.
Have changed the cables I use to my router but you are right it could be shoddy new cabling in the building.

[robin]

BT will be dispatched to deal with it if you compain about voice quality to bull dog I believe. The reason is that even though the local loop is unbundled, the LLU providers still get BT to deal with cabling issues as they have no staff of their own to get involved. So no, BT won't listen to you, but yes it will be a BT engineer that calls in the end to fix the problem, I believe.

In any case those numbers look suspicious. 576 upstream looks like an 8mbit service but 1024 downstream looks all wrong. I don't know what all the available training rates are, but 1024 is quite suspicious in that its exactly what you would get for a 1mbit/s service. Have you perused adslguide? I'll bet someone else on there has had the same issue and perhaps even resolved it already. I might also try a second modem if you haven't already (I can lend you one when I get back to UK if you don't have others).

Cheers,
Robin

[Sanjøy]

Chers will bash the dog again.

[DDtB]

Still waiting on a MAC code from Sh*tnet... bunch of f'ing etc etcs can't seem to do anything in under 10 days.... (graham exlcuded of course )